Violent video games, piracy threaten Saudi Arabia's youth

Violence in video games and piracy that allow children to easily afford games with their own money are problems even in Saudi Arabia, said a group of educationists after a study conducted in Saudi's capital, Riyadh. A group of young juveniles were involved in the study, and it ended up with a conclusion that 90 of youngsters were negatively affected by violent video games.

According to the study covered by Asharq Alawsat , many young people were unable to distinguish virtual reality from real life. Cited were "evil scenarios" such as combating security forces, destroying state property or violating people in various ways that juveniles wanted to imitate after extended hours of play.

Piracy was blamed by research, saying the complete absence of official censorship coupled with lower than US 2 price tags (as opposed to US 27- 53 prices for legit copies) allow violent video games to spread among children.

The study also noted the lack of games that develop mental abilities and skills, and the how certain games "do not encourage youths to adopt strong values and noble customs and only time is wasted." It also concluded with the idea that "society is facing a critical issue as the danger lies in the fact that video games are interactive," reports the Asharq Alawsat.